Cartoning machine



5 Sheets-Sheet 1 A. H. BURNETT CARTONING MACHINE ALEXAMDER il. BUR/V577' Nov. 11, 1958 Filed Aug. 22, 1955 A. H. BURNETT 2,859,570

CARTONING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 1N VEN TOR.

Nov. 11, 1958 Filed Aug. 22, 1955 Nov. 11, 1958 A. H. BURNETT CARTONING MACHINE FiledA Aug. 22, 1955 5 Sheets-snee?I 5 v INVENToR, MEM/VDH? awe/V577- Nov. 1l, 1958 A. H. BURNETT CARTONING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 22, 1955 'VIII/IIL INVENTOR. AL EMA/@ER M BUR/wirr Nov. l 1, 1958 A. +1. BulNl-:TT

CARTONING MACHINE Filed Aug. 2 2, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

ALEXANDER h! 30P/V577" ATTORNEY United States atent O CARroNlNG MACHINE Alexander H. Burnett, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Swift & Company, Chicago, lll., a corporation of Illinois Application August 22, 1955, Serial No.v529,796

14 Claims. (Cl. 53-3) The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged.

The term unit as used herein may comprise one or more separate items. The disclosed embodiment was devised for the purpose of forming a carton about three cans of cleanser that are to be packaged for sale together. The particular type of carton disclosed and employed with the machine is one that is also disclosed and claimed in my copending application, Serial No. 474,350, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. However, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is applicable to forming other types of cartons about othertypes of units.

It is the general practice in the packaging of product to form a carton and then to insert the unit into the preformed carton. An object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus wherein the carton is formed in situ about the unit. The advantages of such a procedure are readily apparent. The prior practice is a two-step process and reducing this to a single step will obviously result in the requiring of less work and will speed up the packaging process.

With some types of cartons, of which the one disclosed and claimed in application Serial No. 474,350 is an example, the individual items, in this case cans, which make up the unit are held in the carton by reason of the shape of the carton. The very fact that the shape of the carton holds the unit within the carton causes difficulty, if it doesnt make it impossible, to insert the unit into the carton after the carton is made. When this occurs it is necessary that the carton be formed about the unit. Obviously this can be done by hand, but hand operations always are a costly process; thus, a second object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus whereby cartons may be automatically formed about units for use in those cases where it is impractical or impossible to insert the units into the cartons after the formation of the cartons.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

Figure l is a side elevation ofan embodiment of the machine; v

Figure 2 is a plan view of the embodiment of Figure l;

Figure 3 is a section taken at line 3-3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a partial section taken at line 4-4 of Figure l;

Figures 5 and 6 are enlarged diagrammatic views of the structure performing the initial bending of the carton about the unit;

Figure 7 is a fragmentary section taken at line 7 7 of Figure l; and

Figure 8 is a fragmentary section taken at line 8-8 of Figure l.

The method employed in accordance with the present invention for forming the carton from a carton blank about the unit to be packaged is to place the blank on quential alignment of the cans on the belt.

ICC

one side of the unit with the blank approximately centered over the unit. The blank is then pressed in the direction of the unit in the areas immediately to either side of the unit, thus bending the blank to overlie three sides of the unit. In doing this the unit is supported in an area at least as small as the side of the unit opposite said one side so that after the pressing takes place the ends of the two sides of the blank that were pressed down extend downwardly below the bottom of the unit. The unit 'is then slid to one side while at the same time pressing the blank along a line immediately below the unit, thus bending one of the extending edges of the blank under the unit. The unit is then supported in the area which the bent extending edge overlies and the other extending edge of the blank is then folded under to meet the previously bent extending edge of the blank. The two juxtaposed edges to which an adhesive previously has been applied are then pressed together for a sufficient period of time to permit whatever adhesive is used to fasten the two edges together.

In the disclosed embodiment this method is performed by the following general assemblage of parts: first a can feed, generally 10, which assembles the cans into a unit and positions them for the forming of the carton; a carton blank feed, generally 11; a carton folder, generally 12 (best seen in Figures 3, 4 and 5); a glue applicator, generally 13; a presser, generally 14; and suitable power drive means, generally 15. The machine is mounted on a frame generally 16.

Power means The main drive of the power means 15 is operated by a gear hea-d motor 19 with the output shaft 20 carrying a sheave 21. A jack shaft 22 suitably mounted in bearing 23 carries a sheave 24 which is driven from sheave 21 by a belt 25. A bevel gear 27 on jack shaft 22 drives a second bevel gearv 28 attached to vertical shaft 29 mounted in bearing 30 on frame 16. A first cross shaft 32 (Figure 3) is mounted in bearings 33 attached to frame 16. Shaft 32 carries a bevel gear 34 which meshes with a bevel gear 35 on shaft 22. Cross shaft 32 also carries a sprocket 36 that drives a chain 37 which in turn drives a sprocket 38 on the second cross shaft 39. Cross shaft 39 is suitably journaled in bearings 40 on frame 16.

A third cross shaft 42 is journaled in bearings 43 mounted on frame 16 (Figure 2) and has attached to it a sprocket 44. A sprocket 45 on second cross shaft 39 drives a chain 46 which also drives sprocket 44 on the third cross shaft 42.

Jack shaft 22 has a ratchet Wheel 47 mounted thereon which cooperates with a dog 48 pivotally secured to post 49 of frame 16 to prevent any backing up of the machine when the motor 19 is de-energized (see Figure l).

Power means 15 also includes a supplemental motor 51 to drive the can feed 10 and supplemental motor 52 to drive the presser 14 as hereinafter described. It will be readily apparent that these could be driven from the main motor 19 but for convenience of construction and since no timing interrelationship was involved it was found to be desirable to use supplemental motors.

The power means 15 includes various additional parts, such as cams, sprockets, levers, push rods, etc. However, these will be described in connection with the specic parts that they drive.

Can feed The cans resting on one end thereof are fed to the machine on a belt 55 which passes over a pulley 56 and a second pulley, not shown. Stationary guides 57 at each side of the upper run of belt 55 maintain the se- Pulley 56 is attached to a shaft 58, suitably journaled in frame 16, and also carries a pair of sprockets 59 and 460. Sprocket 59 is driven by a chain 61 passing over a sprocket 62 on the output shaft of motor 51. Sprocket V60 is connected by a chain 64 to a sprocket 165 on a shaft 66` 'Shaft v66 is suitably journaled in frame 16 and carries a pulley 67 which drives a belt 68 mounted thereon. The other end of the belt 681s supported on an idler pulley 69 attached to shaft T0 journaled in frame 16.

A gate 73 mounted on the upper end of shaft 74 initially controls the admission of the cans to the machine along belts 55 and 68. Shaft 74 is mounted in a bearing 75 on frame 16 and has an arm '76 mounted on the lower end thereof. Referring Ato `Figure 4, a push rod N77 is slidably mounted in a bearing 78 on frame 16. At one end of rod 77 is an upstanding finger 79 that is received within the slot 80' of arm 76. At the other end of the push -rod '77 is a slot 81 through which shaft 22 passes. Beyond 'slot 81 a cam follower 32 is atatached to rod `77 and is held vin contact with a cam 83 on shaft 22 by a spring 84 attached to push rod 77 Vand to bearing 78. Thus 'the rotation of shaft 22 and cam 83 urges push rod 77 against the resistance of spring '84 to turn shaft 74 and open and close gate '73.

The second control'gate with respect to the entrance of the cans into the machine is formed by an abutment 88 lalong the upstream side, with respect to the direction of movement of the cans on the feed belt 68, of ram 89 (Figure 2). Ram 89 is attached to a rod 90 slidably mounted in -bearing 91 with the other end of the rod carrying a pin 92. Pin 92 is received in slot 93 of lever 94 pivotally attached to frame 16 by a shaft 95 attached to frame 16.

A push rod l98 has one end thereof connected to lever 94 by a pin 949. The other end of push rod 98 has a slot 100 through which shaft 22 is passed. Beyond slot 100 is a cam follower 101 which is held against a cam 102 attached to shaft 22 by a spring 163 connected to push rod 98 and to frame 16.

The cans moving along belt 68 are positioned in front of ram 89 by a stop 105 crossing above the top of belt 68. To prevent the cans from jiggling olir the side of the belt before being moved by ram 89, a movable lip 106 (see Figure 3) which projects upwardly from a lever 107 is pivotally attached to frame 16 at 103. The other end of lever 141-7 forms a cam surface 109 that is held against a pin 110 on lever 94 by a spring 111 attached to lever 107 and to frame 16. It will be seen that when the ram is retracted as shown in Figure 3, pin 110 pivots lever 107 so that the lip 106 projects upwardly to hold the cans on belt'68, while when the ram 89 moves forwardly, spring 111 is permitted to rotate lever 107 in the opposite direction, lowering lipv106 to allow the cans to be pushed from the conveyor belt 63 onto the pressure face 113 of the ,pusher 114. A stop 115 at the opposite side of pusher 114 arrests the movement of the cans and in conjunction with stop V1'0'5 aiigns them for proper positioning during the carton'folding operation.

Carton blank :feed

The carton blanks are vstacked horizontally in aY magazine 120 which has an open bottom as seen in Figure 2. A plurality of upstanding guides 121 align the blanks in the magazine. At the bottom of the magazine are a plurality of projecting fingers 122 which reduce the area of the bottom opening in the magazine and project just under the edges of the blanks to releasably hold the blanks in the magazine.

Immediately below magazine 120 'are a spaced pair of endless conveyors formed of chains 125 rotating around sprockets 126 and 127. Sprockets 126 are rotatably mounted on idler shaft 128 and sprockets '127 are mounted on and driven by third cross shaft 42 0f the power means previously described. At spaced interyvals each of chains 124 has a projecting lug 129.

Between spaced chains is a vacuum head generally 132 comprising a pair of vacuum cups 133 mounted on an arm 134 which has a bore 135 communicating with cups 133. A first and second parallel lever 137 and 138, respectively, are each pivotally connected to arm 134 and to frame 16', thereby positioning arm 134 for vertical movement toward and away from t-he magazine 120. Arm 1-38 extends beyond its pivotal connection with frame 16 and at the opposite end thereof is attached a connecting rod 139 which is also attached to a lift arm 40 pivotally mounted on 4fixed shaft 141. Intermediate the ends of lift arm -140 is a cam follower 142 which is held against cam 143 on shaft 22 by a spring 144 hooked to arm 140 and to frame 16. Thus the rotation of cam 143 raises and lowers vacuum head 132 toward and away from magazine 120 where the vacuum cups 133 can engage the lowermost blank in the magazine adjacent the central portion thereof and by bending the blank downwardly draw it past fingers 122 in the magazine.

The vacuum is applied to the cups 133 from a vacuum pump 147 which communicates through pipe 148 to a conventional 3-way valve 149. The valve stem 150 of valve 149 carries a cam follower 151 which is urged against cam 152 on shaft 22 by a spring 153. The second side of the valve 149 is connected to bore 135 by a flexible tube 154. .The third connection of valve 149 communicates with atmospheric pressure (or if desired a source of superat-rnospheric pressure) through a pipe 155. Thus with the rotation of shaft 22 the vacuum head 132 is moved upwardly so that the cups 133 are in contact with the bottom blank in magazine 120. At this time the vacuum from pump 147 is applied to vacuum cups 133 by cam -152 moving valve stem 150. After the vacuum head 132 is lowered so that the cups are below the upper lrun of chains 125 the valve stem is again actuated by cam 152 so as to shut off the vacuum from the cups 133 and to place the cups into communication with atmospheric (or superatmospheric) air pressure from pipe 155 thus releasing the blank from the vacuum head 132.

The blank that is deposited on chains 125 by vacuum head 132 is engaged by lugs 129 and moves forward to the folding station above plunger -114 where it is slid onto a spaced'pair of guides 15S, best seen in Figure 5. However, before the blank is completely in position on guides 158, lugs 129 slip by the blank vby the curvilinear movement of the lugs around sprocket 127. At this time a pair of positioning fingers 159 are moved vforward to catch the rear edge of the blank 4and `perform the final positioning of the blank on the guides 158.

One end of fingers 159 is pivotally attached to rocker arm 160, with the other end being slidably supported in lixed guides 161. Rocker arms 160 are attached to a rocker shaft 162 suitably journaled in Vframe 16. A downwardly extending arm 163 is also attached 'to rocker shaft 162 with the end of the arm being pinned to a push rod 164. The other end of push rod 164 has a slot through which second cross shaft 39 passes in the same manner in which push rod 77 fits about shaft 22 as shown in Figure 4. A cam 165 attached to cross shaft 39 (Figure 2) controls the movement ofpush rod '164 through a cam follower 166 on rod 164 which is held in engagement with cam 165 by a spring 167 connected between arm 163 and frame 16 (Figure l).

Carton folder The basic structure of the carton folder 12 is the pusher 114 and a folding member ,generally 170. The folding member 170 has an opening which in the disclosed embodiment is the space defined lby rods `171and 172. These rods are spaced apart a-distance only slightly greater than the width Vof the unit vto rbe packaged, as.

best seen inzFigure 5, and it is in this space that the carton blank is initially folded about the topand downthe sidesof the cans as they are pressed through theopening by pusher `114 whichpreferably is.r just slightly smaller in width than the width of the cans to be packaged.

Pusher 114 is mounted on a-vertical rod 175 slidably mounted in a bearing 176 .attached toframe 16. The

lower end of rod 175 has a projecting pin..17.7A which is received in slot 178 of one end ofaliftarm 179..,The other end of arm 179 is pivotally mounted on xedshaft 141. Intermediate the ends of arm 179 is a cam follower 180 that rides on a cam 181 on shaft 22. yThe weight ofv 16. At the end of rod 186 is a pin 188 received within the forked opening 189 of lever 190. .Lever 190 is pivotally mounted on shaft 95 as was lever 94 and is operated in the same manner by alpush rod 191 corresponding to push rod 98 connected by a pin 192 to lever 190 and tting about shaft 22 adjacent the otherend thereof. A cam follower 193 held in engagement with a cam 194 by a spring 195 actuates push rod 191 and lever As seen in Figure 6, vwhen ram 185 pushes the semiformed packages over onto supporting platform 197 the leading, downwardly extending, edge of the carton blank is folded under the unit by rod "172 0f yfolding member 170. To facilitate this'action Aa'pressure shoe 198 rides on the top of the carton to` prevent any ,possibility of the unit not folding the carton but rather riding upwardly.

Shoe 198 is mounted onfour rods 199 slidably mountedV in a bracket 200 forming apart of frame 16. Shoe 198 is urged downwardly by springs 201 which press between the upper face of the shoe and .the lower face of bracket 200. The trailing edge of the carton blank extends out rearwardly as seen in Figure 6 and it is to this edge that the adhesive is applied for the sealing of the carton.

Gluing' apparatus The semi-formed cartons are moved to and through the glue applicator by a conveyor comprising supporting platform 197 on which the cartons rest and a plurality of power operated pushers generally 205. Each of pushers 205 comprises a carrier 206 which is mounted on an endless track 207. Pusher fingers 208 are pivotally secured to carrier 206 by a pin 209 and each finger 208 has a cam lever 210 mounted integrally therewith and carrying a cam follower 211 on the end thereof. Along the side of the track adjacentV the supporting platform 197 is a cam 212. When the pushers 205 are on the portion of the track adjacent the cam, `followers 211 ride on the cam and maintain the fingers 208 in the extended position. As the carriers 206 leave the portion of the track bounded by the cam 212, the fingers 208 are free to pivot rearwardly as seen at the right end of Figure 2 so that they are no longer in the extended position.

Each of carriers 206 is attached to a chain 215 which moves around sprockets 216 and 217. Sprocket 216 is driven by shaft 29 to which it is attached, while sprocket 217 is mounted on idler shaft 218 suitably journaled in frame 16.

- As the package approaches and traverses the glue applicator (Figure 7) a pair of side guides 220 contact the upper portion of the carton. A side plate 221 contacts the lower portion of one side and an abutment 222 on supporting platform 197 contacts the other lower corner. A guide 223 attached to frame 16 holds the rearwardly extending edge of the carton in the .extended position in which it 'was ,tert ,aune eontlpietiony of the fam strokeY illustrated in Figure 6.

The glue applicator 13 comprises a ro1ler`225 mounted on a shaft 226 and rotatesV in a bath of adhesive in tank 227 on frame 16. On the upper edge of tank 227 are bearings 228 in which shaft 226 is journaled. At one end of shaft 226 is'mounted a pulley A229 which is driven by a belt 230 froma` pulley 231 on shaft 39 (Figure 2). A guide234 extends over the top of the'glue roller and is positioned so thatl the rearwardlyrextending edge-of the carton will slide under the guide. The guide is suitably curved,` as seen inFigure 1, so as to insure the edge of the carton coming into contact with, glue roller 225. The guide is then curved inwardly, las seen in Figure 2, so as to bend vthe flap of the carton to which the adhesiv has been applied approximately straight down.

The pushers 205 continue the movement past the glue,

roller and at the time that the carton is positioned on a plurality of rollers 236 of the tucker mechanism generally 237, the fingers 208 are releasedby the ending of cam 212 so that the fingers swing back out of the way to permit them to go bythe semi-formed carton.-

Referring particularly to Figures 2 and 8, rollers 236 are mountedon spindlesu238 fastened to carrier 239. Pins 240 projecting from each end of carrier 239 pivotally support the carrier in frame 16. An arm 242 fastened to and projecting downwardly from carrier 239 is attached by means of a connecting rod 243 to a crank 244 on shaft 245 suitably journaled in frame 16. At the lower end of shaft 245 is an actuating lever 246 to which is pinned one end of a push'rod 247. The other end of push rod 247 is enlarged and slotted to slip about shaft.

29 in the manner in which push rod 77 fits about shaft 22 as shown in Figure 4. A cam 249 attached to shaft 29 actuates push rod 247 through a cam follower 250 held in Contact with cam 249 by a spring 251 connectedl projectingy between the end of actuating lever 246 and a portion of frame 16 (see Figures 1 and 2).

A pair of supporting feet 254 are attached to a cross member 255 (see Figures 1 and 8) which in turn is supported by a depending leg 256 pivotally attached to frame 16 by a pin 257. At the upper end a connecting rod 259 is pivotally attached to leg 256 and to a rockerV 260 (best shown in Figure 2) rotatably mounted on` 269 mounted on supporting arm 270 secured to 'one end of a shaft 271 suitably journaled in frame 16 (see Figure l). On the other end of shaft 271 is attached a second arm 272 (see Figures 1 and 3) with the lower end being pivotally attached to a push rod 273. Adjacent the other end of push rod 273 is a slot by which push rod 273 fits about shaft 22. Beyond the slot is a cam followed 274 which rides on a cam 275 'attached to shaft 22. The cam follower is held in engagement with the cam by a spring 276 secured to push rod 273 and to frame 16.

Presser The presser generally 14 is supported on a pair of lower side guides 281 and a pair of upper supporting members 282 attached to frame 16. A supporting plate 283 is secured to the two lower guides 281 [adjacent the lower edge thereof. An upper belt 284 is carried on a roller 285 with the roller having a shaft 286 journaled in frame 16. A lower belt 287 is carried on a roller 288 with a shaft 289 of the pulley journaled in frame 16. As seen in Figure l, the upper run of belt 287 overlies supporting plate 283 and rides thereon. Idler rollers, not shown, sup-m port the other end ofthe belts. Upper supporting members 282 have a plur-ality of slots 291 therein in which slots are received the axles 292 of pressure rollers 293. The slots are positioned so that the bottom run of belt 284 is slightly closer to the top run of belt 287 than the height of the packages, whereby as the packages are going through the pressure station the rollers 293 will press belt 284 toward the bottom belt 287thus applying pressure against the ends of the carton to hold the two end aps of the carton blanks together 'while the glue sets. The length ofthe presser 14 and speed of operation of the belts will be such as to holdthe package thus compressed for a suflicient length Vottime to allow the particular glue being used to set.

The output shaft of motor 52 carries a pair of pulleys 294 and 295. A pulley 296 is mounted on shaft 289 and a corresponding pulley 297 is mounted on shaft 286. Pulley 296 and thus belt 287 is driven by a belt 298 from pulley 294 while pulley 297` and thus belt 284 is driven by a belt 299 from pulley 294.

Operation The carton blanks 300 are stacked flat in magazine 120 as seen in Figure l. The cans are delivered to the machine sequentially along belts 55 and 68 where they pile up in sequential order against gate 73. As ram 89 moves forward from the retracted position shown in Figure 2, the gate 73 opens to permit the cans to be moved along by belt 68. However, they are then stopped by abutment 88 on ram 89. The distance between abutment 88 and gate 73 corresponds to the length of the group of cans that are to make up the packaging unit. In the illustrated embodiment this is three cans. The gate 73 then closes to shut out more than the three cans already occupying the space between abutment 88 and gate 73. Ram 89 retracts opening the space above belt 68 and allowing the three cans to continue on along belt 68 until restrained by stop S. The three cans are held on the belt by lip 106.

Ram 89 starts forward towards its extended position, at which time lip 106 is lowered to permit the ram to transfer the three cans onto pusher 114 with the cans being aligned by stop 115. It will be noted that the alignment of the cans was fixed by the cooperation of stops 105 and 115.

In the meantime vacuum head 132 would have been raised to bring the vacuum cups 133 in contact with the l'owermost blank in magazine 120 and the vacuum would have been applied to cause the cups to grip that blank. Vacuum head 132 was lowered to withdraw the blank from the magazine and deposit the blank on conveyor chains 125. The vacuum would then be shut olf to release the blank and the blank would have been moved along the conveyor by lugs 129 on the conveyor. As the blanks approach the end of the conveyor chains 12S as defined by sprockets 127 the blank would slide up over guide 158 and would be leftin this position as the lugs 129 turned around sprockets 127. The final positioning of the blank on guides 158 would be performed by iingers 159 which slide forwardly contacting the rear edge of the blank and pushing it into exact position on the guides.

Pusher 114 is then raised to press the top of the blank 300 between the top of the three cans forming the packaging unit 301, and the lower edge of the folding member 170 as delined by rods 171 and 172, with the continued movement of the pusher folding the blank 300 d-own about the sides of the packaging unit 301. The leading side 302 and the trailing side 303 extend below the folding member 170 along the sides of pusher 114.

At this time second ram 185 is moved from the retracted to the extended position to slide the partially formed package from pusher 114 onto platform 197. The leading side 302 is bent rearwardly with the partially formed package being prevented from riding up by pressure shoe 198. Thus at the finish of the stroke of` `48 ram 18S the partiallyformed package tion illustrated in Figure 6.y

At this. timeone vot the pushens 205 contacts the rear of the package and moves it along platform 197. The trailing side 3,03of the :carton blank 300 is held in the extended position by=guide,223. During the course of its travel the partially formed package is moved past the glue roller225iwhere the roller deposits a lm of adhesive on the under side 'of 'thetrailing side 303 (see Figure '7). Upon leaving. the glue rollerthe trailing side 303 is turned downwardly by guide 234' and the package is ultimatelyy deposited on rollers 236 by the retraction of fingers 208 ofpushers205 as the cam followers 211 reach the end of cam 212.

The `feet 25.4 thenmoveup under the outer edge of the leading side 302 (that is foldedunder the can) to support the package in conjunctionfwith the upper guides 220, and the rollersy 236. are turned` downwardly to be out of the way of tucker ingerslS. Tucker lingers 268 move in towards the packagewith the fingers 268 contacting the downwardly extending side 303 of the package and turning side 303 under in contact with the leading side 302 that was previously turned under the package. The tucker fingers 268 move :back out of the way, rollers 236 are brought up in contact'with the bottom of trailing side 303, and the feet 254 arerrnoved away from the package.

The package then remains in this position until the package immediately following is pushed towards the rollers 236 by the pushers 205. When the following package contacts the leading package already on the rollers 236, the leading package is .pushed forwardly onto conveyor belt 287 with the followingpackage being deposited on rollers 236.as just described. The power driven conveyor belts 284 and 287 then move the leading package through the presser 1.4'with the rollers 293 applying pressure to the top of the package through belt 284 and pressing the package against the vroller belt 287. As previously mentioned, the speed-and length of the presser 14 is such as to thus hold the package compressed for a sufficient period of time to permit the glue to set so that when the package emerges from the end of the presser 14 the package has been completed.

The foregoing detailed description is only for clearness of understanding and for the purpose of complying with 35 U. S. C. 112, and we do not desire to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described for obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.

I claim:

l. The method of folding a carton blank about a unit to be cartoned including the steps of supporting the unit on an area of no greater width than the unit, placing the blank on one side of the unit and approximately centered thereon, pressing the sides of the carton blank in the direction of said unit in the areas immediately to eitherv side of said unit to fold the blank about said one side of the unit and the two adjacent sides, with the remaining portion of the blank extending downwardly from said two adjacent sides, sliding the unit to one side while pressing the leading carton side underV the unit, supporting the unit alongithe outside portion of the carton side folded under the unit, and folding the other side of the blank under the unit and pressing said other side against the inner portion of the carton side initially folded under the unit.

2. The method of folding a carton blank about a unit to be cartoned including the steps of supporting the unit on an area of no greater width than the unit, placing the blank on one side of the unit and approximately centered thereon, pressing the carton blank in the direction of said unit in the areas immediately to either side of said unit to fold the blank about said one side of the unit and the two adjacent sides, with the remaining portion of the blank extending downwardly from said two adjacent sides, sliding the unit to one side while pressing the leadassumes'the posi-' ing carton side under the unit, supporting the unit along the outside portion of the carton side folded under the unit, applying an adhesive to the extremity of one of said sides, and folding the other side of the blank under the unit, pressing said other side against the inner portion of the carton side initially folded underthe unit, and holding said sides in juxtaposition until the adhesive sets.

3. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, a first means to place said unit on said face in alignment with said opening when said face is in said first position, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said .opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, with the sides of the carton extending below the unit, means to move said unit horizontally from said opening across said member thereby bending one side under said unit, means to apply an adhesive to a portion of a side, means to fold the remaining extended side into overlapping relationship below the unit, and means to hold the sides in said relationship until said adhesive sets.

4. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, a first means to place said unit on said face -in alignment with said opening when said face is in said first position, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, means -to move the unit in a horizontal direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, and means for folding the other 'side of the carton about said unit in juxtaposition to said one side.

5. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along aline intersecting said opening from .arfrst position at which said face is spaced below said opening, a conveyor positioned adjacent the first position of said pusher to place a unit on said pusher when vthe latter is in said first position, means to align the unit placed on said pusher with respect to said opening, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, means to move the unit in a horizontal direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, and means for folding the other side of the carton about said unit in juxtaposition to said one side.

i 6. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, supporting means having a supporting surface positioned to one side of the first position of said pusher with said surface at substantially the sa'me elevation as said face, a ram movable along a first path above said surface lnormal to saidl line from a retracted position at which a unit may be moved in front of said pusher to a position at which said unit will be pushed onto said face, a stop at the opposite side of said pusher from said supporting means, said supporting means including a conveyor to move a unit in front of said ram when in said retracted position along a second path substantially normal to said first path in a given direction and a stop beyond said ram in said direction, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, means to move the unit in a horizontal direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge ofthe opening and bending said side under said unit, and means for folding the other side of the carton about said unit in juxtaposition to said one side.

7. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, supporting means having a supporting surface positioned to one side of the iirst position of said pusher with said surface at substantially the same elevation as said face, a ram movable along a first path above said surface normal to said line from a retracted position at which a unit may be moved in front of said pusher to a position at which said unit will be pushed onto said face, said supporting means including an endless conveyor to move units sequentially in a given direction into a position in front of said ram when said ram is in the retracted position, said ram having an abutment on the upstream, with respect to said direction of movement of the units on said conveyor, lside thereof extending rearwardly from the face of the ram to block the movement of subsequent units on said conveyor when said ram is extended, a gate positioned along said conveyor upstream from said abutment a distance only slightly greater than the length of a unit, said gate being operatively connected to said ram to close prior to the return of the ram to the retracted position and open after the ram leaves the retracted position, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, and power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit.

8. ln a device fo'r forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, Va first means to place said unit on said face in alignment with said opening when said face is in said first position, a second means to position a carton blank between vsaid unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit and to stop the pusher at a second position with said face at about the level of the top of said member, a ram movable along a path normal to said line above'said face at said second position thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, and means for folding the other side of the carton about said unit in juxtaposition to said one side.

9. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger l1 in width than the width of said unit, a pusher .having `a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting :said opening from a first position at which said face is Ispaced below said opening, a first 'means to place said unit on 'said face in alignment with said opening when said -face is in said first position, =a second means to position a carlton blank between said unit and said member, 'power means lconnected to said pusher to push said unit through `said opening folding the blank about the sides of ythe unit, lmeans to move the unit in a horizontal-direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing fone of vsaid sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, means .for supporting the Ypartially enclosed yunit with the portion 4thereof 'to be icovered by the other l.side

exposed, means to convey 'said runit from said opening While so supported, a `tucker to fold said other side about the unit overlappinga portionfofsaid one side, and means to hold said other side against the overlapped portion of said one side.

lO. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, 'a folding member having a generally lhorizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting Vsaid opening from a 'first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, a first means to place said unit on said face in alignment with said opening when said face is in said first position, a second means to position a carton vblank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit and to stop the pusher at a second position with said face at about the level of the top of said member, a ram movable along a path normal to said line above said face at said second position, thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, means for supporting the partially enclosed unit with lthe portion thereof to be covered by the other side exposed, means to convey said unit from said opening while so supported, a tucker to fold said other side about the unit overlapping a portion of said one side, and means to hold said other side against the overlapped portion of said one side. Y

ll. In a device for .forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face .is spaced below said opening, a Vfirst .means to place said unit on said facein alignment with said opening when said face is in said first position, a second means to position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit and to stop the pusher at a second position with said face at about the level of the top of said member, a ram movable along a path normal to said line above said face at said second position `thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit with the other side being bent away from the unit, a conveyor positioned adjacent said 4member adjacent said edge of the opening to receive the partially cartoned unit pushed across said member by said second ram, means associated with said conveyor and constructed and arranged to support said partially cartoned unit on only the outer portion of said one side, means along said conveyor to apply adhesive to a portion of a first of said sides, a tucker further along said conveyor to fold said other side about said unit overlapping the exposed portion of said one side, and means to hold said other 'side against the overlapped portion of 'said one side.

12. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about va unit vto be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having .a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along a line intersecting said opening Vfrom a first position at which said face is spaced below `said opening, supporting means having a supporting zsurface positioned to one side of the first position vof said pusher with 'said surface at substantially the same elevation as said face, a ram movable along a first path above said surface normal to said line from a retracted lposition at which a unit may be moved in front of said ,pusher to :a position at which said Aunit will be pushed onto sa-id face, a stop 'at the opposite side of said pusher from saidmeans, said supporting means including a conveyor to move a unit in front of said ram when in said retracted position along a second path substantially normal to said first path in a given direction and a stop beyond said ram in said direction, a second means to .position a carton blank between said unit and said member, power means :connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, :a second ram movable along a path normal to fsaid line above said face at said second position Vthereby 'pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side :under said unit with the other -side being bent away `from the unit, a Vconveyor positioned 'adjacent said member adjacent said edge of the .opening to receive the partially cartoned unit pushed across :said member by said second ram, means associated Wfithsaid -conveyor and constructed and arranged to support said partially cartoned unit on only the outer portion lof said one side, means alo-ng said conveyor to apply adhesive :to a portion of a first of said sides, a tucker further along said conveyor to foldsaid other side about isaid unit oven lapping the exposed portion of said one side, and means -to hold said other side against the overlapped portion of said one side.

13. In a device 'for forming a carton from a carton blank about a unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally horizontal opening only slightly larger in width than the width of said unit, a pusher having 'a generally horizontal pressure face and movable toward said member along Aa line intersecting said opening from a first position at which said face is spaced below said opening, a first means to place said unit on said face in alignment with said opening when said face -is in said 'first position, a pair of guide bars immediately below said member and spaced beyond the opposite sides of said opening, a pair of spaced endless conveyors yto move a carton blank onto said guide bars, a pair of position fingers to position said blank on said guide bars in alignment with said opening, a magazine for holding carton blanks, feed means to remove a blank at a time from said magazine and transfer it to said conveyors, power means connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides 'of the unit, means to move the unit in a horizontal direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit, and means for folding the other side of the carton about said unit in juxtaposition to said `one side.

14. In a device for forming a carton from a carton blank about a -unit to be packaged, a folding member having a generally :horizontal'openingonly slightly larger in Width than the width lof said unit, a pusher having la generally horizontal pressure fa'ce Vand movable toward said member along a line intersecting said `opening 'from a first position at which said face is spaced lbelow said opening, a first means -to place said unit on said face in alignment with said opening when said 'face is in said first position, 'a second means fto lposition a carton blank between said 'unit and said member, power vmeans connected to said pusher to push said unit through said opening folding the blank about the sides of the unit, means to move the unit in a horizontal direction across the width of said opening thereby pressing one of said sides against the edge of the opening and bending said side under said unit and bending the other side outwardly away from said unit, a conveyor adjacent said member to receive the unit moved across said member by said last mentioned means, said conveyor having a section constructed and arranged to move out from under said unit, means including a pair of supporting feet adapted 14 to support said unit when said section is moved from under said unit with the edge of said one side exposed, a tucker movable toward said unit to engage said other side of said blank to turn it under said unit, and means to press said other side against the exposed edge of said one side.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

